WAITSBURG-Tom House set a goal in his freshman year of high school; he wanted to earn every FFA degree available. After five years of diligent record keeping, showing hogs at the local fairs, and a hefty amount of volunteering, House has earned the American FFA Degree; an honor awarded to less than 1% of FFA members.

"Once I earned my Greenhand Degree my freshman year, I wanted to go all the way through to my American. It was kind of a personal challenge," House said. "I'm the first in my family to receive my American Degree."

The American FFA Degree has some very rigid requirements, and ta...